Do Two Careers Equal Half The Career Stress?

A slash career means that you have a day job that brings in most of your income, but have a second job or self-employment gig that also brings in revenue. For instance I once knew a highly-regarded professor who also played in a Greek band on weekends. He played at weddings, funerals and parties. He effectively lived in two worlds. His bandmates didn’t really understand his academic job. His academics barely realized his musical talent.

Many employers frown on people with slash careers. In fact, some companies forbid any form of outside employment or side hustle.

Forbes published an online article, suggesting that people with slash careers make good employees. If you think about it, who would you rather hire: someone who goes home and creates a profitable blog or leads yoga classes? Or someone who crashes on the couch?

From your perspective, people with side hustles feel fulfilled. They’re more likely to be happy at home — and at work.

There are good reasons to maintain a side hustle. You get to tap into skills, interests and talents that get used in one career but not another. For instance, a primary care physician became quite talented in ceramic sculpture. He was able to draw on design and creative talents for sculpture, while of course using his scientific training with his patients. Most likely one reinforced the other.

Second, your second career helps reduce stress. If your day job is going badly, your side gig might compensate. If your day job requires sitting at a computer and analyzing data, your side gig might let you move around, use your manual skills or simply acquire a new mindset.

You don’t need a whole second career to gain those benefits. You can identify activities such as swimming, hiking, playing an instrument or engaging in a creative challenge. Personally I enjoy ceramic sculpture because I normally don’t get artistic or use my hands in my day job. There’s been a surprise benefit: as I work with ceramics, I’ve developed my artistic eye which helps when I create designs through Canva.

Of course, stress can be debilitating. If your life is seriously affected – your relationships, career, and/or health – you may need to work with a professional therapist. Stress actually contributes to many physical problems, mostly acute but sometimes long-term. It’s not always a question of, “Take a painting class and call me in the morning.”

Finally, your slash career could make you more marketable if you’re downsized or you’re ready to retire.

Adrienne Dupree had begun to sell products on Amazon when her job was unexpectedly brought to an end. She’d worked for the government and hadn’t seen it coming. She moved smoothly to become a full time Amazon reseller, eventually exceeding her original income. You can learn about Adrienne’s story (and stories of other career changers) through my product, Pivot Your Business. I interviewed her and eleven other highly successful people who had made the transition from corporate life to starting a business. If you’re looking for ideas for your next career, that’s a good place to start.